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Treasury Tightrope

Updated June 15, 2007 12:01 a.m. ET

Watching the Bush Administration deflect Congressional calls for China to "revalue" its currency reminds us of a strongman walking a tightrope. Congress wants to take a swing at Beijing, while the White House tries to achieve balance. It's difficult, if not impossible, to do both at once.

Yet that's exactly what the Treasury Department is trying to accomplish. By declining to label Beijing a "currency manipulator" under its semiannual review Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson sent a message to Congress...